Feb 24
leaku
leaku
you can call me leaku
water dripping
flowing through my sleek tubes
open faucets
everyone controls me
feel the liquids pouring down my hose i’m sprinkling
leaku
leaku
oo ee oo
seen from China
seen from France
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from China
seen from Hungary
seen from France
seen from Malaysia
seen from Peru
seen from Malaysia
seen from Germany
seen from United States
seen from China
seen from China
seen from Argentina
seen from Argentina
seen from Malaysia
seen from Argentina
seen from Argentina
seen from United States
leaku
leaku
you can call me leaku
water dripping
flowing through my sleek tubes
open faucets
everyone controls me
feel the liquids pouring down my hose i’m sprinkling
leaku
leaku
oo ee oo
The Stars how they Shine
Game: Kingdom Hearts
Characters: Sora, Kairi, Ventus, Vanitas, Lea, Riku, Isa, Iris
Pairing:
Rating: Everyone
Author: The Usual Spot Cafe
Word Count: 491 Words
Notes: What happens when Isa is left alone with Riku’s best friends.
Ventus stared in shock as Riku rushed out of the cafe. Lea went to follow right on his heels but was immediately bombarded by Sora and Kairi.
Sora stood to his full height, puffing his chest out and staring Lea down as best as he could from almost a foot below his eye level. “I swear on Leviathan's wrath if you’re two timing Ri-“ Lea didn’t even let him finish before picking him up and setting him aside, rushing out the door of the café.
Sora huffed and Kairi immediately turned their wrath on Isa. “This is your doing isn’t it? You asked Demyx to play a song for you and Lea!”
Ventus glanced sideways at Iris and Vanitas. Iris looked just as shocked as he did and Vanitas sipped his soda, watching like this was the most interesting thing in the world. Ventus turned back to Sora, Kairi, and Isa, seeing the shorter two poking Isa in the chest and angrily whispering to him so as not to disturb the other patrons.
Isa arched an eyebrow at them, brushing their hands away like one would brush away flies. “I merely came here to see my friend, not to rekindle some romance that never should have been in the first place, nor to fight with you.” Isa looked down his nose at the two of them, “Just what do you two think you can accomplish here? Neither of you are big enough to present a problem for me.”
Kairi and Sora both gasped in indignation, “Is that a challenge?”
Isa’s mouth twitched upwards in a smug smirk, “No, merely an observation.”
Kairi and Sora both moved forward as if to confront him, but stopped when they heard the bell on the door ring again. Riku and Lea walked in, Riku looking abashed with Lea’s arm around him. They sat at the table and Sora and Kairi immediately surrounded Riku, pushing Lea to the side. “Are you ok, Reeks?”
“I’m fine. It was just a misunderstanding on my part.”
Kairi glared over at Isa and Lea, “Are you sure? We’ll kick their asses for you.”
Riku laughed, “Well, maybe you could take Lea, but not Isa.”
“Hey!” Lea looked insulted while Isa smirked. He elbowed Isa, “Well, aren’t you going to defend my honor? Tell them I could totally beat them?”
Isa rolled his eyes, “Oh, you mean I’m supposed to lie?”
Lea crossed his arms, pouting, “Some friend you are.”
Isa smiled for the first time any of them had seen that day, “You know you love me, Loser.”
Lea smirked, “Yeah, yeah, and you love me, Lunatic.”
Riku gave Sora and Kairi a reassuring smile when they looked at him as though asking for what to do. He reached over and grabbed Lea’s hand that was now resting on the table, giving it a squeeze. The two sat with their fingers intertwined and enjoyed the evening with their best friends.
Commission for @savaage-nymph, requesting Riku treating Lea’s injuries so I decided muscle therapy would be cool cause its easy to forget to stretch or take care of yourself, even better to have someone strong enough to get the painful knots out.
Do not repost or use without permission from the commissioner or myself, please ask first.
Commission info at my website
OR
Arrange a deal where you buy a commission worth something on my Steam wishlist.
Honestly, I feel like there should be more fan art of dream eater riku
Sorikai with Kairi and Sora petting Riku's head or coddling him? Sign me up!
Lea accidentally discovering Riku's embarrassing fondness for head pats and that he makes little purr/coo/clicking noises? Sign me up!
Random Radiant Garden citizens(Such as Aerith, Leon, or Yuffie) having different reactions when he leans into a simple pat on the head? SIGN ME UP.
Riku having a badass ability to aid Sora, Kairi, and Lea in combat? SIGN. ME. THE. HELL. UP.
Also Dream Eater Mating season? Dream Eater mating season.
In the Presence of the Moon, No One Sees the Stars
Game: Kingdom Hearts
Characters: Lea, Isa, Riku, Ventus, Vanitas, Iris Amicitia, Sora, Kairi
Pairing: Riku/ Lea (Leaku)
Rating: Everyone
Author: The Usual Spot Cafe
Word Count: 1781 Words
Notes: Riku gets jealous of Isa and Lea’s relationship even though it’s exactly like he and Sora’s. The song Demyx sings is You and I by the Struts (It’s a really good song, give it a listen)
“Ok, I’ll see you then. Love you too. Bye.” Riku looked up from his book, suspicion all over his face as his boyfriend pressed end call on his cell phone.
“Was that your parents? Sibling? Some other relative?”
Lea shook his head with a smile, “Nah, that was just Isa. He’s decided to come visit me. We've been talking about seeing each other again since I moved but with the job I don’t really have much time and he didn’t need a job since his parents are paying for his school.”
“Isa…your um…” Riku cleared his throat, trying to hold down the little green monster of envy threatening to claw it’s way up his larynx, “your childhood friend right?”
Lea just smiled brightly, “Yep! We’re probably as close as you and Sora are. I’ve known him since daycare.”
Riku looked back down at his textbook, brow furrowed, “Well, that’s nice.”
Lea arched his brow at Riku, his grin quickly fading away. “You’re jealous.”
Riku threw him a glare over top of the turquoise glasses he was wearing. “Am not.”
“Uh huh. Just do me a favor, Ku?” Riku hummed in acknowledgment before Lea continued, “Give him a chance?”
Riku sighed, just barely resisting rolling his eyes, “Anything for you, babe.”
Lea sent him a tight smile, grabbing up his messenger bag. “Well, I’ve gotta get to class. See you later?”
Riku nodded, “Of course.” Lea gave him a kiss on the top of the head before walking out. Riku immediately texted Sora and Kairi everything.
##
Kairi and Sora bounced in their chairs as they sat in the café on music night. “This is so exciting, meeting your boyfriend’s ex!” Kairi grinned at the boys seated next to her.
Sora smiled back at her, “I know! So much drama. Do they still have feelings for each other? Will he beg for Lea back? Why do our siblings hate him so much?”
Riku rolled his eyes at them, “C’mon guys, they aren’t exes. They’re just friends. And Roxas and Xion have beefs with a lot of people so I don’t really think they’re the best judges of character.”
Sora scoffed at him while Kairi pouted, “party pooper.”
Ventus, Vanitas, and Iris showed up to hang out with them since Xion and Roxas refused to come and Sora and Kairi spent the whole time they waited for Lea and Isa to show gossiping about hypotheticals of what the two really were to each other. Riku pouted until he saw a familiar mop of red hair walking by the windows.
Lea pushed open the door to the café, yanking off his beanie and leading his blue haired companion over to the couple of tables the group of six was occupying. “Hey guys, sorry we’re a little late, but there’s a blizzard in Radiant Garden that delayed the train a little. I want you all to meet my friend, Isa,” Lea smiled, gesturing to the stoic looking man beside him, “Isa, this is Ventus, Iris, Vanitas, Sora, Kairi, and, most importantly, my boyfriend Riku.”
Riku looked at the other man. He was attractive for sure. He had an angular, but pretty face, full lips, bright green eyes, and long, silky blue hair flowing over his shoulder in a braid. He was as tall as Lea and as bulky as Riku. Intimidating was definitely a descriptor now running through Riku’s head about Isa, but the actual ‘threat to my relationship’ alarm hadn’t gone off…yet.
“Hello. It’s nice to meet you all,” Isa's voice was quiet and calm. He didn’t smile, but nodded in acknowledgment to them all before taking a seat while Lea got them something to drink.
Riku rolled his teacup around in his hands, looking at Isa sitting a seat away from him. He had left room for Lea to sit between the two of them and Riku was grateful for that. “So,” Riku cleared his throat as the word came out hoarsely, “what are you studying, Isa?”
Intense green eyes met his own blue-green ones and he immediately wished he hadn’t spoken up without Lea as a buffer. The corner of Isa's mouth twitched up in an almost smile though, so Riku considered it a win. “Astronomy. I love space. Stars, nebulae, galaxies, but especially the moon.”
“Oh, wow, that’s awesome!”
“And you?”
“Oh, um, I’m undecided right now.” Riku blushed a little, just knowing that Lea's friend would think he was stupid for not knowing what he wanted to do.
Isa just nodded, “I was too my first year of college. I actually was almost completely misguided by my admiration for Xemnas Chi. The man nearly had me convinced to go into the field of cardiac medicine.” Riku raised his eyebrow at Isa’s seeming willingness to talk about Xemnas. According to Roxas and Xion, he’d been the last to finally admit to himself that Xemnas' Organization was simply a well disguised crime outfit.
“Yes the Chis do love their hearts.”
Riku saw another little mouth twitch from Isa that may have been a smirk, “Indeed.”
Lea came back with two mugs and set one down in front of Isa. He had a huge grin on his face as he sat down, “You two seem to be getting along.” Riku and Isa said nothing, but it was just as well, as Demyx had just taken the stage, acoustic guitar strapped to him.
Demyx immediately started playing a song that had people tapping their feet and some joined him singing. Riku looked over and saw that Lea was laughing at something Isa had said to him. Sora and Kairi were watching like it was an episode of a soap opera. Riku nudged Sora, “Stop it. They’re just two friends who haven’t seen each other in a while.” Sora pouted and rubbed his ribs where Riku’s elbow had caught him.
Demyx finished his sing a smiled at the crowd. “How's everyone doing tonight?” The small crowd in the café cheered in response and Demyx grinned even wider. “Today I want to play something special for two dear friends of mine because one of them is visiting from out of town. Isa, take a bow.” Isa rolled his eyes as Demyx gestured to him, but waved a little. Demyx didn’t press him further and continued on. “So, for Isa and Lea, here’s your song.”
Riku's eyes grew wide as Demyx began strumming his guitar again. Sora was looking between Isa, Lea, and Riku with his hand covering his mouth, eyebrows raised in shock. Lea and Isa were looking at the stage horrified and Riku could feel the pang in his chest growing sharper by the second.
“Where did you come from
Where did I go?
You and I
Walking the mile now
Need you to know
You and I
When I try to leave you
You won't go
This is a love song nobody knows”
Riku could feel his eyes stinging as he listened to the song. They had a song, what sounded like a love song. They had been an item at one time, and Lea had lied to him.
“You and I
Hate the way you make me feel
I need you
Hate the way it's only ever
You and I
Can't escape
You always steal my shadow
Give it back
Give it back
Give it back!
You and I
You and I”
Riku felt a hand on his shoulder and he immediately brushed it off. He had to get out of there before he actually started crying. In the back of his mind he vaguely registered multiple voices calling his name as he rushed to the door, coat barely even on. He started aimlessly walking, only to stop when the bitter wind bit right through the sweater he was wearing. Riku stopped to zip up his coat, his fingers fumbling in the cold. He’d left his gloves and hat back at the café, but he refused to go back, so he threw up the faux fur lined hood of his coat, shoved his hands in his pockets and continued on. In the silence of the night, he distantly heard the bell on the café door.
“Riku!” He heard Lea’s voice behind him and huffed, not stopping for him. “Riku, please wait!” Riku closed his eyes, looking down towards the ground. He had stopped moving and he started shivering as the cold began to creep in.
“You lied to me.” He knew his voice was shaking but he couldn’t bring himself to care at the moment. He could feel Lea's body heat radiating off of him as he stepped closer and tried to resist pressing into it just to get warm.
“You know I didn’t lie. I never said we didn’t try dating. I said we were just like you and Sora.” Riku blushed as he remembered he’d actually told Lea about the time in high school he and Sora had tried dating (and Kairi too which was probably why it didn’t work out because of Riku’s jealousy issues).
“Why did Demyx play your guys' song like you’re still together?”
Lea put his hand on his hips, shaking his head, “It’s a breakup song, Ku. It was a song we dedicated to each other when we agreed we couldn’t date. Because we do still need each other in our lives, just not in that way.”
“I’m sorry. I…” Riku shivered, hunkering further into his hood as the cold wind whistled last him, “I can be really irrational and jealous.”
Lea chuckled, “You have to hold it deep inside until you eventually get over it, like I do when I see you messing around with Sora and Kairi.”
Riku blushed again, looking up into Lea's eyes, “I didn’t know that made you jealous.”
Lea shrugged, “Only sometimes, like when you guys joke that you’re all together and madly in love, but I also get that you guys are really close friends and probably couldn’t live without each other.”
Riku nodded, leaning on Lea’s chest, “I should have understood. I just…”
“What?”
Riku’s blush deepened and he hid his face in Lea’s chest, “He’s really pretty.”
Lea put his hand under Riku’s chin, tilting his face up to get him to look into his green eyes, “So are you.” He leaned down and brushed Riku’s lips with his. Riku stood on his tiptoes, pressing further into the kiss. Lea smiled softly down at him as they pulled away from each other. “Now, we should get back before you freeze to death or your best friends kill my best friend.” Riku chuckled, letting Lea wrap an arm around his shoulders and lead him back to the café.
Unusual Beginnings
Game: Kingdom Hearts
Characters: Riku, Vanitas, Lea, Roxas, Xion, Sora, Kairi
Pairing: Leaku (Akuriku)
Rating: Teen for mild swearing and depictions of blood and bruising (nothing bad)
Author: The Usual Spot Cafe
Notes: Just a random Leaku I had bouncing around in my files for a few months now. I decided to make it part of this AU because I needed something to be the first post and I like this story. Hope you guys like it!
"Aw come on Riku! You gotta come with me! I have an extra ticket, no charge!"
Riku narrowed his eyes at the dark-haired copy of his best friend. The golden eyes looked at him pleadingly as Riku pushed his glasses up his nose. "Why aren't you taking Namine?"
Vanitas pouted, "she has to work cause someone at the tattoo shop suddenly can't come in. Plus, she has an exam the next day." He paused and waved the tickets to the concert in front of Riku’s face. "Come on! Volbeat is the headliner! I know you like them." He gave a knowing smirk as Riku pursed his lips in defeat. Volbeat was his favorite band, but unfortunately the only one he hadn't seen live yet.
"Fine. Now can you leave me to finish studying? I have an exam in an hour."
Vanitas jumped up and pumped a fist in the air victoriously. "Yes! I knew you would cave." Riku just rolled his eyes as someone shushed Vanitas from somewhere else in the Usual Spot Café. Vanitas looked around with a glare to find the offender, but when he didn't spot anyone he just placed the ticket on Riku’s book. "I'll pick you up at seven! The doors open at ten!"
Riku gaped at his retreating figure, "then why are we leaving so early!?"
Vanitas turned around and shrugged. "Half the fun is waiting in line." He grinned and hurried off to class as Riku stuffed the ticket in his bag, grumbling. He didn't know how or why it happened, but whenever Namine was busy, Vanitas would go to him to hangout and go on adventures with him. Not that he minded, it was kind of nice. Riku got to see a whole new side of the harsh twin and he was fun to hang out with. Truth be told he couldn't wait until the concert. He had heard that Xion and Roxas were thinking about going too, but with some of their Organization buddies. He sighed and buried himself deeper into his book, pulling his long hair up into a messy bun, blushing when girls surrounding him sighed and began talking about him. Red-faced he put in his headphones and lost himself to his studies.
Vanitas bounced up and down on his toes excitedly as the stagehands moved about the stage, getting it ready for the main event. Through the first acts they had managed to get only a few rows back from the front of the crowd. Riku craned his neck to look around at the buzzing crowd, spotting Roxas and Xion some little ways away from them. Riku nudged Vanitas in the side and pointed at them. Vanitas grinned at his brother who turned when he felt someone's gaze on him. The blonde grinned and began waving, pointing them out to the girl next to him. She waved happily, going to move to get closer to them until a tall redhead stopped her and pointed at the stage excitedly, making Riku and Vanitas look towards the stage also as the crowd began screaming. Sure, enough the band had taken to the stage and immediately began playing, much to the joy of Riku and Vanitas. They looked at each other in awe before getting swept up in the crowds crazy dancing. Riku laughed and danced himself, keeping an eye on the pierced adult as he moshed.
Riku kept his eyes trained to the stage while the crowd moved around him. He had always been the type of person that never moved when people tried to push him out of the way, that's half of the reason why people always took him to concerts. He just stood there and danced at a few of the songs, but mostly just enjoying the music and screaming out the lyrics like everyone else. As the crowd shifted again Riku found himself next to Xion and Roxas. Roxas looked at the lilac haired adult in amazement.
"Can you believe this!?" He screamed over the loud bass.
Riku chose not to answer verbally and just gave a big smile and shook his head while Xion and him thrashed next to Vanitas, who had found his way back to Riku. As one song ended and another began the tall redhead pressed up against Riku with a large grin as he danced and sang to the lyrics. Riku grimaced slightly and tried to move away from him. He didn't know the guys name, but had seen him around campus enough to know he was an alright guy, especially since he was Roxas and Xion’s best friend. Unfortunately for Riku the redhead was all limbs when he danced, one moment he was staring at the lead singer with a grin on his face, the next a thin elbow was colliding with his face, right in the middle. And it hit hard. Pain blossomed across his nose and cheeks making him stumble slightly.
"Oh fuck!" His hands went to his nose as he blinked tears away from his vision. When it cleared, Vanitas, Xion, and Roxas were staring him horrified. He could feel the blood rushing down his arms as his nose freely bled, giving him an uncomfortable stuffy feeling in his nose. Vanitas mouthed 'bathroom' and pointed off to the side. Riku nodded and walked off, Roxas and Vanitas following close behind. Xion stayed with the group that had came with her and Roxas. The crowd let them through easily once they saw the blood coursing down Riku’s pale arms. It was a short-hurried walk to the bathroom, Roxas went off to find a worker to get a first aid kit while Vanitas helped Riku clean up the blood.
"Oh man what happened?"
Riku growled and replied I'm a stuffed-up voice. "That stupid redhead slammed his elbow into my nose!" Riku began scrubbing his hands in the sink while Vanitas wet down a paper towel and wiped his face.
"Oh man I'm so sorry! I feel like this is all my fault!"
Riku shook his head lightly as more drops of blood fell from his nose. He narrowed his eyes at the drips and tilted his head back to try and stop the flow. "It's cool. How bad does it look?"
Vanitas sucked in air between his teeth and looked at Riku nervously. "Do you want the truth, or a happy lie?"
Riku tilted his head back up to offer a glare to the adult as Roxas came back with a worker in tow and the offending redhead who was writing his hands together nervously. Riku turned his glare onto him. His hair was long, almost to the bottoms of his shoulder blades and he had it spiked up in the back. His green eyes were wide with worry as he stared at Riku. The worker just sighed and got out the emergency kit, asking mundane questions.
"Was this a fight or an accident?"
Riku’s eyes narrowed at the redhead even further if possible, making the redhead gnaw his lip nervously. "It was an accident."
"Is there an open wound?"
Riku sighed stuffily, "I broke my nose in the pit dude, just clean me up and stop the flow."
The worker nodded and got to it, wiping Riku down with an alcohol wipe before stuffing cotton in both nostrils.
The redhead’s brow furrowed as he stared at Riku. "Oh, geez I'm so sorry! I'll pay for anything medical you need to get! Oh, wow that's so bad!"
Riku shook his head no as the worker left the bathroom with a frown. "It's fine, it was an accident."
The redhead gave an uncertain look. "Are you sure? Man, you look awful!"
Riku glared at him again and got out his phone, using the front camera as a mirror. "Oh shit."
Vanitas grimaced and ran a hand through his hair. "I told you you didn't want the truth."
Riku nodded and lightly began prodding his cheeks, wincing at the pain slightly. Roxas friends elbow had really did a number on him. Not only did it smash his nose head on, but it also gave him two black eyes and split the skin on the bridge of his nose. Riku sighed and put his phone away, looking at the group with a smirk. "Just between us I got into a really cool fistfight here that I totally won." The four adults laughed before heading back to catch the last few songs of the concert.
Riku decided that he would go to the doctors in the morning and make sure everything was fine, which he was sure it was. The rest of the concert he kept stealing glances at the enigmatic redhead who had done the deed. Riku chuckled to himself, he was cute and as far as first encounters go, this could have gone worse.
The following Monday Riku was back in his spot in the café, this time his best friends Sora and Kairi were with him, joking about his face. He had told them the truth of course, even to the point of thinking the offender to be cute.
"Hey Riku?" Riku hummed in acknowledgement and turned from his book to the brunet who just made a disgusted face and covered his eyes comically. "OH, GOD ITS SO GROSS!" Riku rolled his eyes as Kairi laughed. The bruising and swelling certainly did get more gross after the weekend happened. It was now less black and blue and more of a purple, yellow and green. The swelling had almost completely gone away and was replaced by more bruising. The split skin had needed to be stitched up, but he refused to wear the bandage on the stitches because it made him itch.
Kairi leaned forward to get a closer look, "so what do we tell people again?"
Riku smirked, "that I got into a fight at the concert and won."
Sora snorted before turning back to his essay. "Yeah like your lame ass could win in a fight"
Riku looked at him mock offended, "excuse me? Are you implying that I'm lame by going to bed at nine, I can't win in a fist fight?" He gave the brunet a shit-eating grin, "then did I imagine all those years growing up when I kicked your butt at every turn?"
Sora rolled his eyes and laughed, "shut up, you know I know you're a scary monster boxer dude."
Riku grinned and flexed his muscles, making the gaggle of girls that followed him around blush and giggle. "You better remember that!" The trio laughed before falling into silence until someone cleared their throat next to Riku. They looked up in unison, frowning when they saw the tall redhead.
Riku’s eyes narrowed at the familiar face as Kairi put her book down, "is there something we can help you with?"
The redhead blushed, darkening the triangles on his cheek. "I was wondering if I could talk to Riku." He gave a sheepish smile at them before continuing. "I'm the one he got into a 'fight' with."
Kairi’s eyes widened in understanding before nodding, "oh right! Uh yeah! Sora and I were just leaving, weren't we Sora?"
Sora looked up confused, "no I still have three pages to write!"
Kairi glared at him and began picking up his things, "you can finish it in the dorm, lets go!" Sora whined as Kairi dragged him away from the two. Lea sat down across from Riku, looking down at the floor.
Riku sighed and shut his book with a snap. "So, before you say anything I don't expect you to pay anything, I only needed stitches everything is fine."
He chuckled and shook his head. "Actually, I saw you here with Roxas's twin and figured I would formally introduce myself. Names Lea, got it memorized?" He gave a cocky grin as Riku raised an eyebrow in disbelief.
"Fantastic. I don't think I'll ever forget you."
Lea chuckled and ran a hand through his flaming locks, "I uh also wanted to apologize for doing that to your face..." he trailed off and stared at the carpet uncertain.
Riku shrugged, "it's fine. It will heal eventually. The only thing I'm grateful for is it won't be crooked."
Lea sighed, "are you sure there isn't anything I can do to make it better?"
Riku smirked and put his hand on his chin in mock thought. "Actually, there is."
The redhead looked up hopefully, "anything!"
"Take me out to dinner."
Lea looked taken aback by the blunt request and stared at the teal eyed bruised beauty in front of him. "Dinner?"
Riku grinned and pointed to his face, "I figure that if you're making me live with this ugliness until it heals, you at least need to be seen with it once. Plus, I think you're cute."
"C-cute!?" Lea looked at him in shock as Riku hastily scrawled his number on a slip of paper. "I broke your face!"
Riku handed him the slip before getting his bag over his shoulder. "No, just my nose." He smirked and gave Lea a wink. "Remember, you owe me dinner." Lea nodded dumbly as Riku took off to his last class of the day. Lea looked down at the slip in slight awe before smirking and putting it in his pocket. That encounter could not have gone any better, for once he was glad to have long uncontrollable limbs. He finally got to talk to his crush for several years. The girls that had gathered around to watch Riku glared at Lea as he stood up and walked by them. He just grinned at them victoriously and flipped all of them off before walking out the doors with a spring in his step.
Ballet Sores
Game: Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy XIII
Characters: Sora, Aqua, Lea, Ventus, Vanille, Riku
Pairing: Leaku (akuriku) at the end
Rating: Teen
Author: The Usual Spot Cafe
Word Count: 1434
Notes: I wanted to write something about the struggles dancers go through, while I myself am not a ballerina, I love ballet and actually do know a few dancers. Dancing is so harsh on your body and while it is a beautiful art, permanently damaged feet can be the reality of it. I didn’t plan on ending this on a shippy note, but I do like how it turned out. I hope everyone enjoys!
“5, 6, 7, 8!” The blue haired woman clapped her hands together in a quick tempo as her blonde assistant beat on a drum on the floor, helping her keep time.
“Pick up that foot Sora!”
Sora groaned and lifted his leg higher, not that it could get much higher as he waited for his cue. It was already above his head.
“Lea your turns are looking mighty sloppy right there!” Lea narrowed his eyes but tried to spin tightly. “Much better! Sora now!”
Sora began dancing around the large group, heaving a sigh of relief once he could bring his leg down. They had been trying to perfect this choreography for hours. Even Vanille looked exhausted. But that’s what you had to expect when you’re being taught by one of the best prima ballerinas in the world. Sora glanced up at Aqua’s reflection in the mirrors, noting her jaw set in determination and groaning internally. They would be at this all night if Ven didn’t stop her.
“Vanille! Tighter!”
Vanille gasped as she was lifted by Lea, “tighter what!?”
Lea smirked and set her down, “I think everything.”
“Okay stop!”
The team froze in the middle of the choreography, standing still in their poses. Ven stopped pounding on the drum and yawned, showing off the roof of his mouth to everyone.
“I want everyone to get into a line! Time for grand jeté practice!”
The company groaned and got out of the choreography, Sora stepping forward with a frown, “oh come on Aqua! We’ve been doing this for five hours! I’m pretty sure Vanille’s box is cracked and her shoes are going to be red by the time you’re done. You gotta give us a break! You’re only correcting basic stuff now!”
Aqua raised her eyebrows and looked over at the en pointe dancer, “is your box really cracked Vanille?”
The pink haired girl looked up sheepishly, “no… but my toes did start bleeding a little bit ago…”
Lea grunted, “my shoes are pooled with blood.”
The troop nodded in agreement and stared at Aqua, chests heaving as they gasped for air. Aqua looked at the hopeful faces before turning to Ventus. “What do you think?”
Ven shrugged, “I think they look pretty clean Aqua. Just a few changes here and there and you should be good for the competition.”
She sighed, “fine. You guys are doing good, I’m sorry if I seem a little crazy.”
“It’s not a seem, you are a little crazy.”
“Watch it dorkupine.” Aqua flashed him a glare, coupled with a small smile that made it less threatening. “Okay everyone, grab a shoe repair kit on your way out the door; Vanille follow me. I’ll show you how I wrap my foot and cushion my box. It might help you.”
The small girl nodded, “right! Thanks, Aqua!”
She nodded, “now get out of my sight everyone! I want you all back here at the same time tomorrow!”
The troop cried out in unison as they hurriedly began gathering their things. “Yes, master Aqua!”
Aqua’s eye twitched, “cut out that master bullshit!”
“Yes, master Aqua!”
“Ugh!” Aqua threw her hands up in the air in frustration before gathering her things and going into the locker room, Vanille right behind her.
Sora set down three cups and eased into the cushy chair with a groan. “I didn’t think Aqua was ever going to let us go.”
“Me either.”
Ven nodded in agreement, scrolling on his phone as the ballet dancers took their ballet flats out of their bags and began cleaning them. Sora and Lea both had their shoes off and were propping them up on the coffee table in the darkened corner of the café. The section they were in was specifically designed for people who wanted privacy for napping, or for people in sports who needed a well-deserved rest.
“I think I have blisters on top of my blisters…”
Lea snorted at Sora’s hushed voice. “Yeah I’m pretty sure my foot is a huge bruise.”
Ven took a sip of his drink, “that’s possible.”
Sora groaned and got out alcohol wipes from his bag, wiping down the various cuts, blisters, sores, and patches of hardened skin. “I have a bunion…”
Lea gasped as Sora put an alcohol soaked wipe on his feet. “You have to do more toe stretches then. How are your nails?”
“Purple, but otherwise okay. You?”
Lea winced as he cleaned off his feet, “my big toe nail is cracked, but it was beforehand. Ugh man I’m letting these air out for a bit.”
Sora nodded in agreement before leaning back in the couch and getting on his phone. “If you don’t mind me I’m gonna go in a social media coma for an hour.”
Lea nodded and flipped his hand towards Sora as his eyes fluttered shut of their own accord, the training day catching up to him as he drifted off to sleep.
Lea awoke to the sound of hushed arguing.
“What the hell Riku!? Why would you do that!?”
“Tch, it’s not like I meant to Sora! I didn’t go into the gym thinking I would get into the ring without any of my gear!”
“This is ridiculous! I haven’t seen you hurt this bad after a match since-“
“Since Ansem, I know. Just help me clean up? I know you have a first aid kit.”
“Ugh fine, but no more!”
“Deal.”
Lea opened his eyes a crack, hoping he could see what got Sora so worked up, unfortunately he was met with Riku’s back. He watched Sora grab the kit and set to work cleaning up Riku. The silver haired man gasped every once in a while, but otherwise kept silent.
“There all done. Your hands are your livelihood man, don’t wreck them.”
“I could say the same about your feet… what’s gonna pay more Sora? Blitzball or ballet?”
Sora narrowed his eyes at his best friend as Lea sat up on the couch. “Riku don’t… morning Lea.”
Lea nodded and yawned, “what time is it?”
“Little after seven, you’ve been asleep for an hour. You gotta bandage your feet.”
Lea nodded and grabbed the first aid kit, stopping when a pale hand reached out and grabbed him. “Let me help. Sora and I always help each other bandage the other up after ballet or boxing.”
Lea blushed and looked up into Riku’s teal eyes, “are you sure? It’s kinda gross.”
Riku smiled, making Lea lose any reach of angry he had at the split eyebrow, lip, or obvious broken nose. “Trust me. Sora always rants and raves about my foot massages. I’ll have you back on your feet as chipper as Sora in a minute!”
Lea snorted, “I doubt that but okay.”
Riku gave him a huge grin before grabbing Lea’s foot and getting to work on it, hitting just the right pressure points that made all the soreness go away. Then he rubbed lotion on the severe dry cracked patches before putting ointment on the rest of the foot, making sure to get in every cranny. Riku then took some padded gauze and wrapped it up tightly, before repeating the process on Lea’s other foot. When he was done he tapped Lea on the leg, “there you go!”
Lea sighed contently, “oh man that does feel better. Thank you so much! How are your hands?”
Riku smiled and held them up, showing off they were already covered in gauze. “Sorry, Sora already patched them all up. I got into a bare-knuckle brawl. Which was not a good idea.” He chuckled lightly before Lea grabbed his hands.
“Well next time they get sore and cut up, come find me and I’ll help you out. I’ve been known to give killer hand massages.” Lea added in a wink at the end making Riku laugh harder.
“Okay I will. Boyfriends gotta take care of each other after all.”
Lea froze and raised an eyebrow as Riku’s face gave away just how horrified he actually was at what he uttered. “Oh? Is that what we are now?”
Riku blushed deep red, “uh if you want to be that is! Oh, crap I messed up!”
Lea laughed, “Riku it’s okay! I would love to be your boyfriend.”
“R-really?”
Lea nodded before leaning in and cupping Riku’s face, pressing his lips against his. “I have ballet again tomorrow, meet me in the same spot?” Riku just nodded dumbly before sitting next to him, staring ahead horrified at the way he asked Lea to be his boyfriend as Lea cuddled up next to him.
Squall Incoming
Game: Kingdom Hearts/Final Fantasy
Characters: Riku, Lea, Terra, Squall, Aqua (mentioned), Rinoa (mentioned)
Pairing: This is mostly about siblings, but there is Leaku, Squall/ Rinoa, and Teraqua are mentioned
Rating: Teen
Author: The Usual Spot Cafe
Word Count: 1503 Words
Notes: Really just wanted to write a cute story about the Leonhart siblings and Squall getting introduced to the cafe. (Promise Cloud’s story will be coming up soon guys!)
“Excuse me sir, do you have a moment to talk about our lord and savior, Yevon?” Riku stiffened as he heard those words, the voice sounding eerily similar to his father. Lea, who he had just been giggling and joking with a moment ago, had his eyebrows raised, mouth pulled tight to avoid grinning.
Riku sighed, turning around, turquoise eyes narrowed in a glare, “Sorry, I want nothing to do with-“ he froze, eyes widening as he saw the giant grin on his older brother’s face. “Squall!” He practically threw himself into the brunet's arms, hugging him tight as he heard Lea chuckling behind him.
“Hey, Reeks. How have you been?” Squall pulled away from his younger brother, eyes scrutinizing as he looked him up and down.
Riku grinned at him, “I’m awesome. College is great. I mean, classes are tough, but it’s great!”
Squall chuckled, “And I see you got yourself a new boy toy as well.”
Riku blushed as Lea laughed out loud. “You must be Squall. I’m Lea.” He held out his hand and Squall shook it with a grin.
“Cute and polite to boot. Looks like you’ve got a winner here, Reeks.” Both Lea and Riku blushed at that.
Riku quickly decided to change the subject before Squall embarrassed him more in front of his new boyfriend, “Have you seen Terra yet?”
Squall shook his head, “I just got parked and then saw you two canoodling as I was walking by.” He grinned at Riku’s tomato red face, “Why don’t you take me to this café you guys are always ranting and raving about, I’m sure he’ll show up there eventually.”
Terra was already at The Usual Spot when they arrived, and Squall had received a punch on the shoulder for not letting his twin know he was here. Squall sucked in air through his teeth as he rubbed the sore spot on his left shoulder. “Shiva's tits, Terra. You didn’t have to hit so hard.”
Terra snorted, “Don’t be such a baby. I know with all your training you probably barely felt it.”
The shorter twin smirked, “Yes but what kind of brother would I be if I didn’t make a fuss about it?”
“A good one.” Terra smiled at his twin before sitting back down at the table. He closed his laptop and looked at Squall. “So how did you even get time off to visit?”
Squall shrugged and turned his gaze to Riku and Lea who were ordering at the counter. “Had a run in with a few thugs… Quistis got a little too emotional if you catch my drift and I told the commander I had to get away.”
“Ah. How’s your scar? Still hurting?”
Squall visibly winced and brushed his scar lightly with his fingertips. “Yeah… but don’t tell Riku I don’t want him to worry. It only hurts when I… emote.”
Terra sipped his drink, “or talk, apparently.”
“Could you look anymore like a meme right now?”
Terra snorted, “but seriously promise me you’ll talk to a doctor about that?”
“I promise.”
“Promise what?”
The two older Leonharts looked up to see Riku and Lea. Riku had three cups wedged in his hands while Lea was carrying several plates with the skill only a server would have. Terra and Squall shared a quick look.
“That I’ll bring Rinoa next time.”
Riku nodded, “yeah dude I miss her! I like how she teased you.” He said the last part with a smile as he set down the cups and sat down between his brothers.
Terra snorted as Squall pursed his lips at the memory of his two brothers and new girlfriend roasting him alive. “Shut up. Now are you ever going to tell me how you and Lea met?”
Lea set down the plates with a groan, “oh god please don’t”
Riku grinned maniacally, “gather round brothers and I shall tell you the tale of the wayward elbow and how Lea broke my nose.”
“Say what now?”
Lea groaned and thumped his head on the table as Riku out his hand on his shoulder. “Okay it was the end of last semester and I was in this café studying when Vanitas walked in telling me he needed someone to go to a concert with him.”
“Oh, was this that Volbeat concert you got into a fight in!?”
Riku nodded as Terra rolled his eyes, “wait Squall it gets better.”
“Right.”
Riku cleared his throat, “so as you know I went to the concert and broke my nose, man it was awful. What I didn’t tell you is how I broke my nose exactly. See Roxas and Xion also went to the concert with some of their Organization friends which no big deal, we pushed our way to them and we were all chilling and dancing when this buffoon tries talking to me.” He lovingly put his arm around the tall redhead who just groaned again. “I couldn’t really hear him over the music so I just nod and smile and he goes back to dancing and flailing his arms around which is ridiculous considering he’s a ballerina.”
Lea brought his head up with an annoyed glare, “oh I’m sorry was I supposed to be good at all dance? I was having fun you animal!”
Riku rolled his eyes and pushed lead head back down, “shhhh it will be over quickly. Anyways, so he’s dancing and I’m stuck next to what I think is a human slim Jim. I try to enjoy the concert when suddenly an elbow comes out of nowhere and just bam!” He clapped his hands for emphasis making Squall jump lightly. “He hits my point blank in my nose and cracks the bridge. Immediately I’m covered in blood, Vanitas and Roxas are sending me to the bathroom and they find an employee and I get cleaned up, Lea finds me and apologizes and the rest is history.”
Squall raised his eyebrow, “and you wanted to date him?”
Riku nodded happily, “well yeah look at him! He was so cute and flustered I had to! Besides, didn’t Rinoa drag you around at the opening ball for the SeeD program?”
Squall smiled fondly at the memory of his first introduction to the eccentric woman. “Yeah. I didn’t even know her name.”
Terra rolled his eyes, “you both are weird.”
Squall sighed, “well sorry we can’t all fall in love with people from the island Terra. Not all of us have childhood sweethearts.”
Lea brought his head back up, “you’ve known Aqua that long?”
Terra nodded with a fond grin. “Yeah and let me tell you, she was just as bossy back then as she is now.”
“Damn.”
Squall sipped the drink Riku got him and made a noise of happiness. “Where is my blue haired sister? I was looking forward to see her.”
“She’s at Spellweaver, which Lea,” Terra turned to the redhead who had a stricken look on his face. “Shouldn’t you be there?”
“I completely forgot! Oh, gods she’s going to be so pissed!” Lea gathered his stuff and ran out the door, startling some of the nearby patrons.
Riku shook his head fondly, “that boy. Aqua is going to kill him.”
“Nah she would never ruin her precious ballet dancers.”
“True.”
Squall heaved a sigh and looked around the café, “sometimes I wish I could have gone to college with you two.”
Riku and Terra looked at each other before turning back to the eldest of the three (even if it was only by a few minutes). “Come on squall don’t say that, you love being in the SeeD program!”
“Yeah, I do, but…” he trailed off and chuckled darkly shaking his head. “Never mind, don’t worry about it.”
Riku leaned forward and put his hand on his arm, “Squall we’re always here for you. You can call us whenever you want! You know that.”
“Yeah I know but it’s hard sometimes. I’m trying to get transferred closer but I don’t think they’re listening.”
Terra frowned, “just keep bothering them until they do. Come on we grew up with you! We know just how annoying you can be.” He said the part with a smile making Squall laugh at the memories of their childhoods.
“Thanks guys. You always know just what to say.”
Riku smiled, “we’re your brothers, we have to.”
They fell silent for a moment before Squall placed his hands flat on the table, “well! Now that the mushy stuff is out of the way, who wants to go prank the Strifes?”
Instantly Riku and Terra’s faces broke out into evil looking grins. “We are so in!”
Squall grinned, “then let’s go!” He stood up and waved at them to follow him, which they complied quickly downing the last bits of their drinks and food before rushing after him. Squall may feel like he never got to see his brothers and that the small family was drifting apart, but that didn’t mean he had to be right.